The Purest Rose
by Mana-Garmr
Summary: Based on the Maiden Rose manga... Basically my own version of how Klaus and Taki met and what happened afterward. AU, Yaoi. Rated M for later chapters.
1. Prologue

_The Purest Rose - Prologue_

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><p>"<em>When Klaus agreed to become my Knight, he was scorned by many of his countrymen, called a traitor and a coward – despite his distinguished service record. He gave up every shred of pride that he owned to follow me, and so I gifted him with my own, to wield as a blade against my enemies. Now he has allowed that pride to be stripped away, so that he could defend my honor. Would you have me abandon that same honor now, and throw him away?" –Taki Reizen<em>

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><p><em>1918<em>

Klaus von Wolfstadt first travelled to the Far East when he was very young. He remembered the journey vividly – he was scolded the entire train ride there, warned to behave himself in the presence of the Imperial Family. He was tired of always being chastised for offenses that he hadn't even committed yet.

It was Spring when they arrived on the Forbidden Island, and all of the trees were in bloom. Klaus stood bored, but unfailingly polite, through every introduction. Predictably, he vanished somewhere between the Imperial reception chambers and the guest rooms that his family would occupy for their stay. He never _had_ responded well to his mother's reprimands.

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><p>When Klaus first saw him, he was standing beneath a tree laden with blossoms, petals drifting slowly down around him. For one long, breathtaking moment, Klaus wasn't sure that he was real. His ceremonial robes were arranged to perfection, his dark hair pulled back into an intricate design with not a single strand out of place. His pale golden skin was unblemished, and dark eyes gazed up at the flowers above him unblinkingly. Klaus stood stock still, half afraid that if he moved, the boy would turn and vanish into one of the sunbeams that fell to the earth beside him.<p>

The boy turned silently, briefly looking Klaus up and down. "You can help me." Klaus moved forward as though he had no control over his own movements, and the boy turned back to the flowers, pointing up at them. "I want to reach those flowers, there."

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><p>"Where have you <strong>been<strong>?" Klaus' mother scowled at him, crossing her arms across her chest. Klaus, for once, didn't scowl back, gazing instead back the way he'd come, his face wistful.

_Standing in a secret garden of flowering trees, gazing up into a pair of bottomless eyes. A slight figure held securely in his arms, the lingering scent of roses that he couldn't see… A soft whisper… "…be my Knight…"_

After several long moments of waiting for her youngest son to answer her, Klaus' mother stepped forward and cautiously check his temperature with the back of her hand. It wasn't like him to not have some kind of defensive retort at the ready. Klaus jumped, startled out of his memory by her touch, and proffered up the defiant glare that she had been expecting. "I've been **around**. I didn't get in trouble, and I'm not late anyway!"

She sighed, threw her hands up, and stalked away. The boy was too damned stubborn to deal with sometimes.

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><p><strong>AN:**

I don't read a lot of manga, and I don't remember how or where I found out about Maiden Rose, but it was pretty much love at first sight for me. The artwork is absolutely incredible, I think that both the main characters and the plot are wonderfully complex, and, hey, it's yaoi… :) (I just found out that volumes 3 and 4 of the manga are available online! Just not available for sale in English yet…)

That said, this is going to be pretty AU. Some of it will mirror the actual storyline, but most of it is going to follow my own twisted mind, so I'm sorry if that makes the characters seem a bit OOC. Since the war in the story reminds me of WWII, I'm also going to pull in some places from the "real world" to serve as battle sites (although don't be offended if you love history and these battles aren't quite the way they were in real life!).

I guess that's enough of the disclaimers… If you've found this story because you watch my Final Fantasy stories, I'm sorry that I haven't updated any of those in a while :-/ I promise I haven't given up on them, I'm just having some writer's block-style lack of inspiration right now.

Please **review** if you enjoy the story!


	2. Chapter 1

_The Purest Rose – Chapter One_

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><p>"<em>Who cares if it's a ceremonial sword? It's made out of good steel, isn't it? Just because your living weapon lies broken, doesn't mean you should leave the rest of your weapons behind… Speaking of weapons, where the hell did you put my guns?" –Klaus von Wolfstadt<em>

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><p><em>1928<em>

The bells at Luckenwalde Military Academy tolled the hour solemnly, a testament to the monastery that the school once was. Klaus stood just inside the gate, looking with awe at the well-tended grounds. The road that led into the Academy gave way from worn cobblestones to crushed rock, blood-red and oddly dustless even in the summer heat. The buildings were structured of soaring wooden beams and solid grey stones. Fields of lush green grass, bordered by hedgerows and dark forests, were visible beyond the buildings, and evenly-trimmed hedges and flower boxes lined the fronts of the buildings. Some cadets were visible walking between buildings, but for the most part, the Academy was empty – the next Cycle didn't begin for two more weeks.

Klaus straightened unconsciously upon spotting the cadets, tugging briefly at his suit jacket and straightening his bag across his shoulder. He lifted his chin in a characteristic gesture of defiance before setting off, striding down that crimson boulevard for the first time. He wasn't supposed to be there.

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><p><em>1926<em>

"_Mother! Father, come quick! Klaus has fallen into the river!"_

Winters in Northern Saxony were cold, brutal affairs. They left the ground frozen several feet deep well into Spring, and vast snowdrifts frequently blew across the river that cut through the von Wolfstadt estate. It was dangerous to walk in the vicinity of the river, because often you couldn't tell where the snow ended and the iced-over water began; there were very few sections of the river that didn't freeze in the winter, at least on the surface. For this reason, Klaus and his twin sister, Claudia, were always careful to cross at the old wooden bridge when they played in the fields. It was hard to tell where the ice was thick enough to stand on, so they never risked it; plenty of people had died of hypothermia after falling into the water or, worse, died beneath the ice, not to be found until the river thawed and the snow melted late in Spring.

The teenagers were building a snow fortress in the far fields when Klaus decided that Claudia's turned back made a fine target for a snowball. A fierce battle quickly ensued, ending with Claudia dumping a handful of snow down Klaus' shirt and running as if her life depended on it, laughing. Klaus cursed and hopped around for a moment, trying to get the snow off of his back, before giving chase, the pair headed straight for the bridge.

Claudia reached the bridge first, still laughing as she turned to watch Klaus follow behind her. His heavier footsteps thudded hollowly as he crossed the old planks, and Claudia turned quickly to continue running, right before a loud crack stopped her in her tracks. She turned back to the bridge just in time to watch her brother vanish through the splintered beams.

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><p>They found him nearly a kilometer downstream, washed up on the bank where the river hadn't quite frozen over yet. His lips were blue, and blood trickled from a cut on the side of his head. He wasn't breathing.<p>

Klaus didn't remember falling into the river – he barely remembered reaching the bridge. The doctor told them that it was amnesia, either from hitting his head as he went under or from not breathing for nearly three minutes. His temperature had been dangerously low for days, and his father and older brother, Bertram, took turns burrowing under the covers with him, trying to bring warmth back into his frozen limbs. He had finally woken over a week later, and had practically been under house arrest ever since. The doctor said he was brain damaged from the drowning and from the cold, and his mother took that as a reason to treat him like a small child. He was constantly monitored, constantly told he had to stay indoors, constantly scolded and warned away from the river and the fields and all of his favorite haunts. It was that overprotective coddling that two years later had driven him to sneak away in the middle of the night, walking twelve kilometers to the next train station. He was damned if he was going to spend the rest of his life being sheltered by his mother.

Klaus' grandfather had been telling him war stories since as far back as he could remember – and probably even earlier than that. Tales of the Great War had sustained him as a child, and he had dreamed of learning to command tanks at the Luckenwalde Academy ever since Grandfather had mentioned it to him. It was just his bad luck that he'd injured his head only months before a new war spread throughout the world; with his mother's constant protective guard, it was unlikely that he'd ever be allowed to enlist, even to attend an Officers' Academy. It was unlikely, at least, if he bothered to ask permission first.

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><p><em>1928<em>

"Commandant? There's a young man here to speak with you. He's seeking admittance for the upcoming cycle." Commandant Reichert turned at his aide-de-camp's wry tone, lifting an eyebrow. The deadline for applying for the upcoming cycle had passed some time ago; those requesting admittance were supposed to be turned away and instructed to return during the next admissions cycle.

"You know as well as I do that this cycle is closed, Major."

"Of course, sir, but… well." He huffed a laugh. "The boy simply won't _leave_."

Reichert sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Did he give a name?"

"Klaus von Wolfstadt, Sir."

The Commandant looked up sharply. "Von Wolfstadt? You're sure?" The Major nodded. "Interesting… I served with a von Wolfstadt in the Great War. Good man. Stubborn beyond belief – if this boy's related, it's no surprise that you can't get him to go away." He chuckled. "Let me make a quick phone call first, then send him in."

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><p>'<em>Well,'<em> Reichert thought, _'he's __**definitely**__ related.'_ Klaus could have been an exact clone of his grandfather at that age – golden eyes, a hint of a broad frame that he was still growing into, stubborn glare and all. He had trouble keeping the smile off of his face when he noted the defiant stance that Klaus had adopted.

"Well, boy? You're over a month late for the admissions process, and I have little patience for young fools who don't have the good sense to listen to a Major's orders. Explain to my why I shouldn't call the MPs and have them forcibly throw you out the front gate."

Klaus blinked, uncertain for a moment. Grandfather had never mentioned an admissions process, and Luckenwalde was supposed to be one of the most elite military academies in the world. What if he couldn't actually get in? He eyed the Commandant for a moment, trying to decide how to proceed. He suspected that digging his heels in and arguing like he would have at home would only earn him a swift boot out the door.

"My grandfather never mentioned an admissions process…" At the Commandant's withering glare, Klaus sighed, squaring his shoulders. "I had to sneak away from home to be able to come here. If I can't get in this cycle then I'll wait until the next one, but don't send me away. I can work; I've lived on a farming estate my entire life, and I'm not afraid of hard work. If you'll give me room and board, and guarantee me at least a chance during the next admissions, then I'll be the hardest worker you've ever had here." His fists were clenched at his sides, the gleam in his eyes almost desperate as he waited for the Commandant's response. If he had to return home to wait for the next cycle, it was highly doubtful that he'd be able to escape his parents a second time.

Reichert observed him quietly, considering the phone call he'd made. Gert von Wolfstadt had readily confirmed Klaus' identity, confiding that he'd been waiting over a year for his grandson to get fed up with being cosseted and to make a break for it. The head injury that he'd cited was worrying, but it apparently hadn't affected Klaus' reasoning skills or learning ability, for all of his parents' concerns. He had already decided, after speaking with his old war friend, to give the boy a chance, but it concerned him that Klaus was planning on not returning home. Family support, even support given grudgingly, was important to a soldier, particularly during a time of war, and Klaus' grandfather, at least, deserved a proper goodbye.

"I will not accept you as a laborer here. It would set a terrible precedent." Klaus' face fell so dramatically that Reichert immediately felt bad. The boy looked like a kicked puppy with that face. "However, I am familiar with you and your reputation." Klaus' expression changed to one of befuddlement, much to Reichert's amusement and relief, and he continued blandly, pretending as though he didn't particularly care how Klaus was feeling about the situation. "As it happens, one of the students who was supposed to start this cycle has withdrawn from the Academy, leaving a slot open." His gaze grew sharp. "If you ever talk back to my aide-de-camp, or _any_ officer in this Academy, ever again, or if you give me even one reason to regret this decision, I will turn you out the door in an instant, and no military institution in the country will take you in after that. Do you understand me, Cadet?" Klaus was beaming as he answered in the affirmative, and the Commandant nodded before sitting down at his desk. "Good. Now, get out of my office. The Major will secure you a train ticket back home."

"…Sir?"

"You heard me. The dormitories are only open this early if you make prior arrangements. I don't care how well or poorly you get along with your parents; you at least owe your grandfather and your siblings a proper farewell, yes? The dorms will open two days prior to the start of the cycle. The Major will provide you with an inprocessing schedule; don't be late. Dismissed, Cadet."

Klaus sighed, his shoulders drooping a little as he turned and walked out the door.

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><p>"What were you thinking, running off like that? And you <em>enlisted?<em>" Klaus' mother indicated his cadet uniform angrily. "You're _injured_, Klaus! You have no business trying to join the military; your place is here with your family!" Klaus sighed to himself. She had been continuing in this vein for the past half hour, ever since he had stepped through the front door with his new uniform sharply pressed and his standard-issue duffel bag slung over his shoulder. It was quite a letdown, going from the approving glances and friendly nods on the trains to his mother's diatribe. His father stood silently in the background, radiating disapproval.

Tired of her scathing rebuke, Klaus finally broke in. "I didn't _enlist_, I signed up for a commission. There's a huge difference! And I'm _not_ injured anymore! It's been nearly two years, and I'm perfectly fine now! I'm tired of you all treating me like I'm stupid or incapable of doing anything!" To angry to continue, Klaus left his mother standing there, stunned, and he stormed out the door.

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><p>Klaus' grandfather found him an hour later, sitting in the garden where the winter roses bloomed. The rosebushes in this particular courtyard were barren brambles of twisted thorns this time of year; they suited Klaus' mood well. Grandfather rested a hand lightly on Klaus' shoulder.<p>

"They'll come around, eventually."

Klaus snorted. "Yeah, right. They're just upset that they can't control me anymore."

Grandfather chuckled. "You'll understand them better when you have children of your own, I think."

"I doubt _that_ will ever happen. Girls are _stupid._"

Grandfather raised an eyebrow. "You're a little old to still be thinking _that_, aren't you? And I'd like to see you say that to your sister."

Klaus rolled his eyes. "I _would_ say it to her, if she'd bother coming to talk to me. She's on _their_ side. And girls _are_ stupid, anyway. Getting older doesn't make that any less true, Grandfather."

"Claudia isn't on anyone's side except her own; she's upset that you didn't tell her you were going. And most boys your age would have complimentary things to say about women." He sighed. "I suppose it's no surprise; you haven't really been around girls beyond your mother and sister… and Anna, of course, but she's a little old to catch your fancy." Klaus looked askance at him, and Grandfather chuckled. "I know, I know. Sorry." He smiled, climbing to his feet and holding out a hand. "Come on. Supper's ready, and Bertram is back from the fields. I'm sure no one will say anything too terrible while at the evening meal." Klaus sighed, allowing his grandfather to haul him to his feet.

"If you say so."

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><p>Supper was uncomfortable, to say the least. Mother and Father still radiated disapproval, and barely looked at Klaus. Claudia ate in a similar stony silence, and it was left to Grandfather and Bertram to try and carry on a conversation. Klaus, disheartened by the continued cold shoulder from half of his family, barely tried to converse, instead excusing himself early from the table.<p>

The next few days continued in the same vein, and Klaus frequently found himself sitting in the rose gardens, counting down the days and hours until he had to catch the train back to Luckenwalde. If he wasn't sure that he'd end up sleeping in an alley at best, and angering the Commandant and getting kicked out at worst, he would have gone back early to avoid the tense atmosphere in his home. How had the Commandant been so certain that this was a good idea, anyway?

He found himself greeting the morning of his return with relief. He wasn't sure if he'd be any good at learning to command tanks, and he had only his grandfather's reassurances that his home schooling was sufficient preparation for the Academy, but anything was better than staying at the stifling von Wolfstadt estate right now. Everyone always said that absence makes the heart grow fonder, so maybe after a semester at Luckenwalde his family would be more forgiving; at any rate, he wouldn't have to worry about it until the semester break in four months.

Klaus was surprised when someone knocked on his bedroom door; he had said his goodbyes to Grandfather and Bertram the night before, and he wasn't expecting anyone else in the family to want to talk to him today. He opened the door to find his grandfather standing there, an old tin box held carefully in his hands. Klaus gasped, recognizing the dented tin immediately. "Our soldiers!"

When they were younger, Grandfather used to supplement his war stories with an old collection of painted lead soldiers. There were three colors – gold for the Saxons, silver for their allies, and red for their enemies. The set was old enough to contain wagons to represent supply lines and knights on horseback to represent cavalry – their armor was detailed to show what type of cavalry they were, and Grandfather used the heavy cavalry to represent tanks, light cavalry for other vehicles. Bowmen became grenadiers, kings and lords became commanders of various ranks. Infantrymen, of course, remained the same. Klaus, Claudia, and Bertram used to wage enormous battles against each other with those soldiers, and Grandfather always used their wars as opportunities to teach them battle tactics and strategies without being too obvious in front of their parents. He chuckled now at Klaus' delighted exclamation.

"We don't have time for one last battle, or you'll never make your train. I kept these with me during my own days at a military academy though, and they helped immensely in visualizing complex battlefields. They showed up a time or two on actual fields of war as well, when we weren't content with using paper markers to represent forces on the Commanders' map tables." Grandfather smiled. "Take them with you, Klaus. They'll remind you of happier times here at home, and they'll help you with many of your classes."

Klaus took the case reverently, setting it carefully aside before flinging himself forward to wrap his grandfather in a hug. "I'll miss you, Grandfather." Leaving wound up being a lot harder than he had expected.

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><p>Klaus stood on the train platform quietly, duffel bag by his feet. The train to Luckenwalde would be there in a few minutes, and despite everything, he was regretting not saying goodbye to Claudia. The twins had been inseparable their whole lives, and as angry as he was that she had ignored him all week, he wished he'd been able to ignore his pride enough to find her and apologize. He doubted she would have supported him sneaking off to Luckenwalde – she had babied him almost as much as his mother had the past year and a half – but she probably wouldn't have told their parents that he was going, and she would be a lot less upset about it now. He sighed, looking up as the train pulled into the station. There was nothing he could do about it now.<p>

He hefted his duffel, the tin full of soldiers tucked carefully in on top, and turned towards the train, so focused on boarding that he almost missed his name being called. He turned just in time to drop the bag and catch the blur of gold that threw itself at him. He recognized Claudia first by the scent of roses in her hair, second by the vicious slap she delivered to his face. Heads turned to watch as she caught him across the other cheek with a backhand; he grabbed her wrist in time to keep from being assaulted a third time, but there wasn't much he could do to keep her voice from carrying from one end of the platform to the other. "I can't _believe_ you were going to go off to Luckenwalde without even saying goodbye, you big… oaf!" He flushed crimson, well aware that even the train conductor was standing by watching and trying not to laugh. Claudia told him off soundly, and probably would have hit him again if he'd been foolish enough to let go of her wrist. Klaus tucked his chin and didn't bother interrupting; he figured he probably deserved it, and at least the conductor was too entertained to let the train leave without him.

Claudia wound down after a few minutes and collapsed, sniffling, into his arms. Klaus sighed, hugging her back. _'Just like I said… girls are stupid, not to mention completely incomprehensible.'_ Why go through all the trouble of yelling at him if she was just going to hug him afterwards, anyway?

The conductor, deciding that the entertainment was over, called for all passengers to board, and Klaus gently pushed his sister away. "I'll probably see you at the semester break in four months; I have to go now though."

Claudia nodded, wiping her eyes. "Take care of yourself, Klaus." Klaus nodded sharply at her, then turned to board the train, his step much lighter now than it had been earlier. He'd probably have a pair of embarrassing handprints on his cheeks the next couple of days, but it was better than leaving with her still angry and ignoring him.

She stood on the platform, watching the train pull farther and farther away, until it was out of sight.

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><p><strong>AN:**

So, in the English version of Maiden Rose that I own, Klaus' name is spelled "Claus." In the online translations, it's spelled Klaus. It looks more _right _with a "K," so that's what I'll keep for this story. I've also decided that the school term at Luckenwalde is a three-semester term, with short breaks between semesters. I'm debating making it a five year course of instruction to keep the story timeline more plausible… will let you know :)

As mentioned in the Prologue, the events in this story will only loosely mirror the events of the actual manga, so don't be offended by the plot changes :) I also have no idea how old Klaus was supposed to be during the coronation and later when he attended Luckenwalde, so I'm pretending like he's the same age as Taki (even though he seems older than Taki in the manga). I'm sorry that I'm turning Klaus' mother into a "bad guy" here… she seems like she was probably a cool person in the manga, being a pilot and all, but I started this story based off volumes 1 and 2, before I knew anything about her, so she's stuck now :p Maybe I'll find a way to redeem her later…

Please **review** if you enjoy the story!


	3. Chapter 2

_The Purest Rose – Chapter Two_

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><p>"<em>It's been an honor serving with all of you – even if you <em>_**are**__ all insane and try to get me killed on a daily basis. Keep your heads down when the artillery comes flying, boys!" –Klaus von Wolfstadt_

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><p><em>1928<em>

A klaxon cut through the still morning, and Klaus jerked awake, nearly falling off of his bunk in his startlement. A quick glance at his watch showed that it was 0400 and he groaned; classes didn't even start until tomorrow. He wasn't given any time to wallow in his misery; the door at the end of the open-bay barracks that served as the First Years' dormitory slammed open and instructors poured in, dressed in immaculately pressed uniforms and spit-shined boots, shouting through megaphones for the unfortunate cadets to get out of bed.

Klaus untangled himself quickly, snapping his sheets across the bed to straighten them as much as possible before standing at attention at the foot of his bunk. Other unfortunates weren't as quick to rise, or left their bedding half on the ground in their haste to get up, and they suffered plenty of verbal abuse for it. Klaus got a megaphone in his face, shouting at him to "tuck the corners of that bed in properly, what are you, a damned slob?" and the instructors continued down the line, leaving him scrambling to figure out how to make proper hospital's corners on his bed. The result wasn't as crisp as it should have been, although not as sloppily done as many of the bunks, and Klaus suspected that he'd hear about it again soon enough.

Fortunately, the instructor in charge of the assault didn't spend much more time inspecting beds, simply finishing off with insulting the Cadets' cleanliness and somehow dragging their mothers into the abuse. Then he was barking at them to change into their physical training uniforms. Klaus rushed to the wardrobe next to his bed, changing quickly while the instructors walked up and down the barracks, haranguing those who were too embarrassed to change in front of the other Cadets, and screaming at the poor souls who hadn't bothered to unpack the night prior and who had to dig for the proper uniforms. Klaus was relieved that unpacking had been his first priority, right up until an instructor zeroed in on him for his wardrobe not being "dress right dress." He spent the next several frantic minutes rearranging the wardrobe to the instructor's satisfaction, and then he almost had a panic attack when the instructor darted in and snatched up his tin full of soldiers.

"What the _hell_ is this, Cadet? There's no food allowed in the barracks!" The instructor made to toss the heavy tin to the ground, the old painted label too worn for him to realize that it wasn't a food container, and Klaus lunged forward, horrified.

"_Wait!_"

The instructor stilled, and Klaus gulped, suddenly finding himself facing four very grim officers who didn't look at all pleased at having a Cadet shout at one of them.

Klaus straightened back to attention immediately, taking a deep breath. "Please don't throw them, Sir. It's not food, those were a gift from my grandfather. He used them for planning battle strategies during the Great War." The instructors all scowled at him, but the one holding the tin pried it open, eyebrows lifting when he saw the lead soldiers nestled inside. The head instructor, spotting the small gathering, paused in his harassment of the Cadets who were still struggling to get dressed and strode over, holding his hand out for the tin once he saw what was inside.

"Cadets aren't permitted personal belongings until after the first month of training. You will be issued a foot locker to keep personal effects in, should you make it that far in training. Name?"

"Cadet Klaus von Wolfstadt, Sir."

"This will be sealed, tagged with your name, and stored for you until you're permitted to keep it in your possession. Now fix the corners on that bed! My grandmother could make a bed better than you, Cadet!"

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><p>Klaus forced himself not to worry about the lead soldiers while he worked on his hospital corners; soon enough, the rest of the Cadets were finished dressing and being insulted, and the instructors ran them all out the door. He was too busy focusing on not collapsing the next few hours to worry after that.<p>

The Cadets spent the morning being put through a nightmarish PT regimen. They started off with calisthenics to warm up; Klaus decided at count 50 that he hated jumping jacks with a passion. Overhead arm claps began to burn around 100; flutter kicks didn't take nearly that long to make him want to quit. The megaphone-enhanced screaming that erupted whenever another Cadet's muscles gave out were pretty much the only thing that made him grit his teeth and keep working. He was sure that his own muscles would stop eventually, but he wanted to make sure that he held that moment off for as long as possible. Push-ups, sit-ups, and a hellish exercise called the "plank" followed the flutter kicks, and then the instructors were yelling at them to get up and start running.

Some of the Cadets didn't see what direction the instructors were pointing in when they said to run, and they were fatigued enough that they started running whatever direction they were facing when they stood up – most of them the wrong direction. This incited another round of screamed insults and profanities – Klaus wondered if they would one day graduate to just being idiots, instead of _complete_ idiots – and then they group was off, running across the field and straight towards a hedgerow.

Klaus stared as the thick hedge grew closer, wondering if the instructors would turn them before they reached it, and if not, whether or not his legs were too tired to carry him over. The instructor leading the run reached the hedgerow and vaulted over, answering _that_ question. Several of the Cadets in front of Klaus _didn't_ make it over, either, and Klaus veered wide to avoid trampling anyone. He hoped that if he couldn't make the jump either, those behind him would take the same courtesy.

He resisted the urge to squeeze his eyes shut when he vaulted the hedge – fortunately, because he managed to clear it, and only realized when he was lunging over that the ground on the other side was a good foot lower than the field they had jumped from. He adjusted his trajectory hastily to keep from breaking an ankle on landing and bounded after the lead instructor and other Cadets who had made the leap without mishap. He felt oddly invigorated after making the jump, and the adrenaline rushing through him managed to carry him for the first kilometer through the woods. After that, he was back to gritting his teeth and hoping that his legs didn't just give out and send him face first into a tree; he had seen a few of the other Cadets go down that way, and when he was able to hazard a quick glance around, he saw that only about half of the original group was still visible, spread out over about half of a kilometer as more began falling out.

Klaus was mildly relieved when they entered a gentle downhill section – right up until they hit the much steeper hill going up the other side. His thighs felt like jelly by the time they crested the hill, and his calves and sides were competing for which muscle group could burn the worst. He wasn't sure where they were in relation to the Academy any more either; they had taken a winding path through the woods, and although he felt like they had been swinging around to the right, he wasn't really certain. He hoped that this nightmare of a run didn't end with them having to navigate back for breakfast!

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><p>As it turned out, the run actually ended in as field on the other side of the school, criss-crossed with barbed wire and full of mud instead the thick grass present everywhere else on campus. Klaus wasn't sure whether he should be relieved or despaired at the order to low crawl from the woods to the building on the other side. On the one hand, he'd be off of his legs at last; on the other hand, his chest and arms still burned from the earlier exercises, and he wasn't sure he'd be able to stand again on the other side.<p>

He couldn't stand, as he discovered to his embarrassment. He made it halfway up on quivering limbs before everything gave out on him, and he sat there stupefied for a minute, not entirely sure what just happened. A laughing instructor, thankfully not one with a megaphone, sauntered over and hauled him up by the armpits, steadying him to make sure he wouldn't collapse again and then almost ruining it by clapping him on the back. "Not bad for your first day, Cadet! Just wait until _tomorrow's_ PT!" Laughing again at the morose look on Klaus' face, the instructor jogged over to join his peers. Klaus looked around, realizing that many of the instructors must still be in the woods with the Cadets who had fallen out; their numbers were almost as reduced as the Cadets' numbers were.

The head instructor was still there, megaphone in hand and looking barely winded compared to the suffering Cadets. He waited until the other instructors had managed to get the others all on their feet, then ordered them to the showers.

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><p>Klaus wasn't sure if the food they were given for breakfast actually tasted that bland, or if he just had no appetite because he was too tired. A new set of instructors prowled through the mess hall – he guessed that the others were showering and getting their own breakfast – and after witnessing a handful of other Cadets be lambasted for eating too slowly or attempting to get up without finishing, Klaus decided that he'd better choke the food down. He supposed he'd need the sustenance anyway, if tomorrow really was going to be as bad as that other instructor had indicated.<p>

Breakfast was followed with some blessed time off. The Cadets were instructed to familiarize themselves with the grounds, socialize with each other, and "God help any of you maggots that we catch sprawled out on your bunks!"

Klaus wandered alone for a while, too tired and sore to feel like talking to anyone else right now. He wondered if the PT this morning had been a method of weeding the class out; he had seen many of the Cadet's who'd fallen out of the run at breakfast, but not any of those who had collapsed before the run started. He hoped that they wouldn't do the same thing tomorrow if that was the case; he knew that he wouldn't be able to accomplish the same workout tomorrow that he'd done today.

Luckenwalde's campus was easy to navigate once he'd drifted across it a few times. The main gate was on the southern edge of the Academy, and the red avenue ran straight north into the square of administrative buildings. The Commandant's offices and those of his primary staff members were due north; two other buildings – comprised mainly of supply offices and the medical wing – bracketed the road on the east and west. The large square between the three buildings was full of the same crushed stone that the road was made of; it was packed firmly, and Klaus wondered if they drove tanks up here for ceremonies or something. The area was certainly wide enough for it, and oddly unadorned with any fountains or statues.

Further north, on the back side of the Commandant's building, were the dormitories. There were five main buildings, divided according to year, and two mess halls – one that the First Years had eaten in that morning, and one large enough to hold the entire student body and staff. To the east and west of the main square, behind the supply and medical buildings, were classrooms. Beyond those, the fields. Klaus' class had started off in one of the western fields, run into the woods, and looped around to come back in on the same side of the school. A third field on that side of the school displayed expansive gardens. The eastern fields sported a large track, a swimming pool, and sports fields. The northern fields, beyond the dormitories, were barricaded with barbed wire and "live fire range" warnings. A guard shack at the entrance to the area was manned with a pair of infantrymen, and closer inspection revealed that the regularly-spaced guard towers were similarly occupied. Large hangars were visible through the trees, and Klaus decided that that must be where the tanks were kept. The access point was wide enough for a tank to pass through, and he hadn't seen anywhere else that they could be stored. After being calmly rebuffed by the guards when he asked to be let through, Klaus decided to return to the gardens he had seen on the eastern side of the school.

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><p>Klaus realized too late that the gardens were designed as a labyrinth, and he quickly found himself lost and frustrated. The Cadets hadn't been given a set time to return to the barracks, but after the forced breakfast he doubted they were supposed to skip lunch, and it was getting close to noon. He wandered aimlessly for a while, alternating lefts and rights, before he finally sensed the maze opening up to the left. He strode quietly into the opening, finding himself in a small courtyard with a fountain, surrounded by blossoming trees. For a moment, he was transported back in memory, recalling with startling clarity the boy he met in the Imperial gardens ten years ago. He closed his eyes, breathing in deeply to capture the scent of the flowers, and so he was startled when someone spoke.<p>

"We've… met before, haven't we?" Klaus opened his eyes and found himself gazing down into a pair of bottomless dark eyes… that face… Klaus smiled.

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><p><strong>AN:**

Life always sucks as a first-year anything. At least the Cadets who didn't show up early got to miss an extra morning of suffering!

We call jumping jacks "side straddle hops" in the Army, but I find that term a little silly, so I'll stick with the commonly-accepted names for most things in this story :p The plank is also often referred to as the "Chinese thinking position" – not sure why. Google it if you're not familiar with either term, and give it a shot. I've had to do it for 6 minutes straight without collapsing before – not sure how I managed, haha

Enter Taki :) I'm finding myself enjoying writing about cadet training way more than I thought I would :p In case it's not obvious, although Luckenwalde is still an "elite academy" in my story, they don't only take the best applicants from other academies like in the manga. This is more of a West Point-style academy, which takes the best applicants straight out of "high school." That means the Cadets will all be younger here than most of them are portrayed in the manga.

Please **review** if you enjoy the story!


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